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Defendant in Okinawa slaying seeks change of venue

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From Stripes.com

Kenneth Franklin Gadson, who goes by his Japanese wife's family name of Shinzato, was charged with murder and rape resulting in death on Thursday, June 30, 2016, in the case of a 20-year-old Okinawan woman. Screenshot from Nippon News Network

Defendant in Okinawa slaying seeks change of venue

by: Matthew M. Burke and Chiyomi Sumida | .

Stars and Stripes | .

published: July 06, 2016

CAMP FOSTER, Okinawa — A U.S. base worker has denied premeditation in the brutal slaying of an Okinawan woman and wants his case moved to Tokyo, saying he can’t get a fair trial on the tiny Japanese island due to extensive media coverage.

Kenneth Franklin Gadson, who worked on Kadena Air Base and goes by his Japanese wife’s family name of Shinzato, was charged last week with murder and rape resulting in death in the death of Rina Shimabukuro, 20, an Uruma office worker who disappeared in April.

Gadson confessed to the crime, though his attorney said he was under the influence of narcotics following a suicide attempt. In a statement to Stars and Stripes over the weekend, Gadson did not deny killing Shimabukuro but said the police account of the incident isn’t correct.

“I did not have the intention of killing the victim,” Gadson wrote. “Furthermore, I did not rape her. I will state the details of the case in court.”